Much-anticipated consultation documents on a deposit return scheme (DRS) and extended producer responsibility (EPR) were published on 24 March 2021.
Follow our live blog below for up-to-the-minute reactions to the policy announcement. Refresh this page throughout the day for the latest responses.
The joint consultation on EPR is run by the three governments with responsibility for England, Scotland, Wales and the legislature for Northern Ireland.
The DRS consultations are run are by Defra for England and separately by the Welsh Government for Wales and the Northern Ireland devolved legislature for Northern Ireland.
A third consultation on consistency in recycling and waste collections within local authorities is expected before or after Easter.
What’s your view? Email your thoughts on the consultations to: news@letsrecycle.com.
The Resources & Waste Strategy Revisited Conference is taking place online on 12 May 2021. This full day conference will explore responses to the consultations and aims to bring the industry together for networking and discussions on the proposals. Visit HERE for details.
Valpak appreciates Defra’s ‘cooperative’ approach
10.59 – 26 March Compliance scheme Valpak says it is pleased to see the range of options included in the consultations, which it says will allow industry and other stakeholders to produce “constructive responses”.
Adrian Hawkes, policy director at Valpak, said the scale of change proposed for the UK packaging recycling system represented huge challenges for the sector, but also presents significant opportunities to develop an approach that properly addressed producer priorities as well as increasing consumer and environmental concerns.
Adrian Hawkes is policy director at Valpak
He said: “Clearly the scale of costs will be a critical factor for producers to consider and to look for ways that this can be properly controlled and focused to achieve maximum benefit.
“At Valpak we have developed and put forward a number of suggestions that we think could be of significant value to build in to the operational details of the system and are pleased to see many of these ideas incorporated into the consultations.”
He added: “The other key issue which needs very careful consideration is the timing and phasing of introducing various measures. We will be looking at this in detail to see how the different elements can best be dovetailed together to minimise duplicated effort and make the transition as smooth as possible for producers.”
WRA decries low wood packaging recycling targets
9.28 – 26 March The Wood Recyclers Association (WRA) says it does not understand why as part of the EPR consultation the government has proposed wood packaging recycling targets for 2023 “well below” the 48% which was in place in 2020.
The trade association says the low targets will “inevitably” lead to waste wood which could have been reused or recycled ending up in Chapter IV compliant biomass boilers due to reduced segregation.
The WRA says 4.5 million tonnes of waste wood arises in the UK each year
In a statement published yesterday (25 March), the WRA said: “We were told last year that the drive to reduce the wood packaging recycling targets was to fall in line with our European counterparts, when in fact in the UK we have long-established, developed markets for higher grade recycled waste wood packaging including panel board manufacturing and animal bedding, unlike in Europe where material is more likely to be burnt.
“What we now know is that in some European countries, particularly Germany, targets for recycling waste wood packaging is increasing to 40% from 2023 and going up to 60% in 2025.
“If the UK does not act quickly to reverse its decision to reduce our targets, we face going backwards and being behind Europe when we already had a good head start in place.”
Comply Direct points to ‘parallel nature’ of consultations
12.57 – 25 March Martin Hyde, policy leader at environmental consultancy Comply Direct, echoed concerns about the delay to the consultation on consistent collections.
He said it was “imperative” there was some crossover between all three consultations, given their “parallel nature”.
Martin Hyde is policy leader at environmental consultancy Comply Direct
He said: “Whilst it is good to have sight of the DRS and EPR consultations that will shape the future of waste management and recycling in the UK, it is disappointing that Defra have been unable to publish the consistent collections framework consultation.
“This third consultation is key in tying together the progress made so far since the launch of the Resource and Waste Strategy in 2018. Given the parallel nature of these consultations, it is imperative that there is at least some crossover in the release period.
“A shorter, 10 week timeframe will make stakeholder engagement more challenging than in 2019’s consultations; however it is imperative that businesses respond to these consultations directly as they will ultimately lead to significant reform to the type, material and format of packaging available on the UK market.”
Clarity Environmental ‘concerned’ about proposed timelines
11.00 – 25 March Environmental consultancy Clarity Environmental said it was behind the “environmental principles” of the reforms but concerned about the proposed timelines.
The firm’s managing director and founder, David Honcoop, said the “failure” to publish the consistent collection consultation left a level of uncertainty about how the policies would connect.
David Honcoop is Clarity Environmental’s managing director and founder
He said: “Producers are likely to see significant increases to the cost of their compliance, which look to be higher than previously forecast. We are concerned about a number of proposals that could reduce competition in the compliance and collection systems, as there is evidence that this could lead to even further increases, as has been documented in international studies.
He added: “It is vital that businesses are supported by the right data, research and infrastructure that will ensure any decisions taken on packaging achieve the best possible outcomes for people and the planet. With the consultation asking for feedback on a phased timeline, it is important to review whether this provides adequate time for the industries concerned to do just that, whilst allowing them to grow and thrive.
“The scheme administrator now has less than 24 months to be tendered and established and there are some concerns over how this will be implemented, with enough time to adequately prepare for the sheer scale of operations.”
LARAC ‘gravely concerned’ about delay to consistency consultation
10.33 – 25 March The Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee (LARAC) has welcomed the release of the consultations on EPR and DRS but expressed ‘grave concerns’ about the delay in the release of the consultation on consistent collections (see letsrecycle.com story).
LARAC says it believes a DRS that utilises and builds on household kerbside collection infrastructure is likely to be the best solution. It welcomes the fact that the consultation is seeking further views concerning the “on the go” options and the emerging work on digital DRS.
Carole Taylor is LARAC chair
The local authority recycling officer organisation says it continues to support the approach taken on the full net costs in the EPR
consultation with producers being responsible for costs in their widest sense.
Carole Taylor, chair of LARAC, said “I would urge all local authorities to take the time to properly consider these hugely important consultations and respond meaningfully to them.
“The outputs from these consultations will shape local authority waste services for the next twenty years so we need to get them right and working for local residents.
“There is understandable frustration in the delay in releasing the consistency consultation, with further implications for councils.
“There is also concern about the shortened consultation period at a time when local authorities and business are stretched with their ongoing efforts in the face of Covid 19. We would ask the governments to seriously consider reinstating the
consultation period to the full 12 weeks.”
Consultations herald ‘biggest’ sector change in a decade, Suez says
9.36 – 25 March Waste management company Suez says the consultations will be “critical” to transforming the way people approach making, consuming and disposing of products and their packaging.
The company’s CEO John Scanlon described the reforms as brining about the “biggest change to our sector in well over a decade”.
John Scanlon is CEO of Suez recycling and Recovery UK
He said: “Their success is contingent on individuals and organisations from across the value chain coming together to meet the collective challenge of helping government shape the fine detail of its reforms to extended producer responsibility and the design of a complementary deposit return scheme.
“Investment in new collection systems and treatment facilities alone cannot achieve the step change needed to reduce waste and increase recycling, people also need to be empowered to make sustainable choices at the checkout, whether online or in store, and to be able to recycle easily be that at home, at work or on the go.
“With the consultation on consistency in waste and recycling collections now following at a later date, we need to guard against a piecemeal approach to change and have an eye to ensuring the cumulative outcome of all three consultations provides a holistic view and delivers well-designed systemic change.”
ESA says DRS and EPR must make it easier for consumers to recycle
17.08 – 24 March The Environmental Services Association (ESA) said the the long-term success of the DRS and EPR would be determined by their ability to make it easier for consumers to recycle properly.
The trade association representing the UK’s waste management and secondary resources industry echoed concerns about the delay to the third consultation and how it would affect the first two.
Jacob Hayler is executive director of the ESA
Jacob Hayler, executive director of the ESA, said: “We welcome today’s important progress milestone for Defra’s Resources and Waste Strategy and we look forward to reviewing and responding to these critical consultations in detail alongside our members.
“Fundamentally, the long-term success of these policies will be determined by their ability to make it easier for consumers to recycle properly; to incentivise producers to make things more recyclable; and to underpin investment by our sector in the next generation of new UK recycling infrastructure, so it is through these lenses that we will be considering our responses.
“The complex policy interventions set out in these consultations must be considered holistically rather than in isolation, so the decision to consult separately at a later date on ‘collection consistency’ does raise some immediate questions about whether stakeholders will be able to properly assess how the proposed measures will work together in a systemic way, but we remain hopeful that the full picture will become clearer well before the end of the consultation period.”
Biffa hopes consultations ‘facilitate discussions’ with businesses
17.00 – 24 March Waste management company Biffa said the consultations signalled progress on the government’s Resources and Waste Strategy and could facilitate discussion and ‘expert advice’ from businesses.
It said it believes the EPR scheme should encourage and incentivise waste producers to rethink packaging design for recyclability and help to ensure that products which go in the bin are recyclable to begin with.
Jeff Rhodes is head of environment and external affairs at Biffa
And, it thinks the introduction of a DRS could be successful in reducing ‘on-the-go waste’, but it needs to be easy to use and readily accessible.
Biffa’s head of environment and external affairs Jeff Rhodes said: “It is critical the government listens to us and I welcome the consultations launched today. At Biffa we have valuable expertise, we are a leading UK company when it comes to sustainable waste management, surplus produce redistribution and plastic recycling. Our expertise can help government achieve its ambitions of eliminating avoidable waste by 2050, achieving a 65% recycling rate and for all plastic packaging to be recyclable by 2025.”
Delay to launch of third consultation ‘unfortunate’
16.53 – 24 March Producer responsibility compliance scheme Ecosurety welcomed the launch of the first two consultations, but said the decision to delay the third was “unfortunate”.
Robbie Staniforth, head of innovation and policy at Ecosurety, said he hoped the government’s views on consistent collections in England were made apparent “soon”.
Robbie Staniforth is head of innovation and policy at Ecosurety
Mr Staniforth said: “Ecosurety welcomes the launch of these vital consultations, yet feels it is unfortunate that the consistent collection consultation which is intrinsic to the overall functioning of the packaging waste system has not been launched alongside EPR and DRS.
“Given the shortened consultation period, we hope there is significant overlap of the consultations and that the government’s views on consistent collections in England are made apparent soon.”
He added: “Thanks to Defra’s extensive engagement plan over the last 18 months, much of the content of these consultations is very familiar, with Ecosurety’s input on certain aspects of the EPR system’s design clearly having been taken into consideration. We look forward to exchanging views with all stakeholders over the forthcoming weeks, with a view to ensuring the new system is workable from go-live.”
‘Government must take packaging industry’s views into consideration’
16.45 – 24 March The executive director of aluminium packaging recycling organisation Alupro says the waste industry and campaigners are still split on how the DRS should work.
Rick Hindley warned ‘importing’ a DRS scheme from other countries was not guaranteed to deliver success.
Rick Hindley is executive director of aluminium packaging recycling organisation Alupro
He said: “The unique market dynamics of the UK mean that simply ‘importing’ a DRS scheme from other countries is not guaranteed to deliver success. As such, adopting best practice design and taking all available insight into consideration will prove pivotal.
Mr Hindley said Alupro had analysed the implications of implementing a flat rate versus a variable rate deposit fee. “The findings were clear – a flat rate DRS would result in 10% lower return rates for the first two years for all containers, plastic would further dominate the beverage packaging on supermarket shelves and the UK’s thriving aluminium industry, which employs more than 20,000 workers nationwide, would be faced with the real possibility of plant closures.
“Conversely, a variable rate fee would see the government achieve its 90% return rate target almost a year earlier, leading to a higher recycling rate and less litter on the streets – in essence, the best solution by far from an environmental and economic perspective.
He added: “As consultations commence, it’s imperative that the government takes the valuable views of consumers and the packaging industry into close consideration when discussing introduction and implementation. Failure to do so could prove disastrous.”
DRS could help ‘cut plastic pollution’
16.45 – 24 March A comprehensive DRS could be a “game-changer” in efforts to reduce the huge number of discarded plastic bottles that blight the environment but it must include all drinks containers of all sizes, Friends of the Earth said.
Friends of the Earth’s plastics campaigner Camilla Zerr said: “A comprehensive deposit return scheme is needed to boost recycling, cut waste and help stem the relentless flow of discarded plastic bottles that blight our environment and threaten our wildlife.
“However, some of these proposals are far too weak. We need an ‘all in’ scheme that includes bottles, cans and cartons of every size and every material.
“Ministers must stand up to industry lobbying because delaying the scheme until 2024 will create even more unnecessary waste and pollution.
“But focusing on better recycling initiatives like DRS is not enough. Ministers must do far more to reduce the amount of waste produced in the first place.
“The government must set legally-binding targets to reduce the mountains of plastic waste created every year and ensure that more of our products and packaging are re-used and refilled.”
SAVE THE DATE:
The Resources & Waste Strategy Revisited Conference is taking place online on 12 May 2021. This full day conference will explore responses to the consultations and aims to bring the industry together for networking and discussions on all three documents. Visit HERE for details.
The post EPR and DRS consultations – live reaction appeared first on letsrecycle.com.